Most modern theaters and sports facilities such as arenas or stadiums provide an armrest between adjacent seats which, in addition to functioning as a standard armrest, supports a cup holding receptacle for user convenience. While such receptacles vary somewhat in design, all typically are configured to receive a slightly tapered beverage cup within a circular cross-section cup receptacle. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,863,134 issued to Young, et al. sets forth a COMBINATION CUP HOLDER AND ARMREST in which the cup holder is generally circular in cross-section and is integrally formed with the armrest. The armrest is secured to the upper surface of the seating structure between adjacent seats.
Such cup holders have, for the most part, provided satisfactory service in allowing the spectator or theater goer to securely place a single cup therein. Unfortunately, however, such cup holder armrest combinations have been shown to be somewhat limited in providing additional support space for other concession items such as those typically provided at sporting events or theaters. It is not unusual for the typical consumer or theater goer to purchase beverages along with food items such as popcorn, hot-dogs, candy or the like. In addition, the user or spectator is likely to be carrying a number of other items such as napkins or the like. The need for persons seated in such areas to accommodate these varied items has prompted practitioners in the art to provide a variety of devices and trays for food and beverage carrying and support. One such device is set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 5,118,063 issued to Young, Sr. which sets forth a CONCESSION TRAY for carrying beverages and snacks from a concession sales area to a stadium or theater seat. The tray includes a planar support area and a trio of cup receptacles at the forward end thereof each forming a downwardly extending generally frusto-conical element. The elements define respective receptacles for receiving beverage cups and are each generally configured to be receivable within the armrest receptacle of the stadium or theater seat. A balancing support member is secured to the underside of the planar tray portion to allow the entire device to rest in a stable manner upon a counter top or the like. The concession tray is positionable at various angles with respect to the armrest by selecting one of the three cup receptacles for insertion within the armrest receptacle. The concession tray is also pivotable with respect to the armrest through a range determined by the selected one of the cup receptacles used for support within the armrest receptacle. In related areas of the prior art, a variety of other tray devices have been provided. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,798,413 issued to Capelli sets forth a TRAY DEVICE which may be secured to or removed from a supporting arm piece of a furniture article such as a lawn chair. A snap-fit swivel arrangement is provided for pivotally securing the tray to the armrest.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,186,673 issued to Olson sets forth a DETACHABLE TRAY AND TRAY HOLDER having a generally planar tray supported by a removable attachment. The removable attachment includes a bracket securable to a chair armrest by a pair of juxtaposed coil springs. The armrest is forced between the springs to provide a removable attachment of the bracket.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,675,969 issued to Gage sets forth a CHAIR-ARM CUP RECEPTACLE for attachment to the end of the arm of a chair. A cup is cantilevered beyond the end of the chair-arm from a mounting bracket on the end thereof.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,955,672 issued to Brundage sets forth a PLATE ASSEMBLY having a body and cup support member integrally formed therewith. The body is provided with a channel which functions to receive the forearm of the user for support of the plate assembly. The cup support member protrudes into the interior of the channel and functions to provide balancing of the plate when positioned upon the user's forearm.
A variety of early combination tray and beverage or cup holders are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,162,344 issued to Sabol for a BOTTLE TRAY; U.S. Pat. No. 1,544,972 issued to Gebelein for a PLATE; U.S. Pat. No. 1,757,689 issued to Strickland for a COMBINATION CUP AND CONE HOLDER; U.S. Pat. No. 2,801,066 issued to Clare for DISPLAY STANDS; U.S. Pat. No. 3,498,470 issued to Thomas for a SERVING TRAY WITH INTEGRAL CUP HOLDER and Canadian Patent 968761 issued to Graf for a BUFFET TRAY.
Still other generally related prior art devices have been provided for use in combination with outdoor furniture or the like. Examples of such apparatus are found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,003,598 issued to Glaze for a CHAIR MOUNTED TRAY; U.S. Pat. No. 4,591,206 issued to Pribble for a TABLE ATTACHMENT FOR CHAIRS and U.S. Pat. No. 4,575,149 issued to Forestal, et al. for an ATTACHABLE HOUSEHOLD SERVICE TRAY DEVICE FOR FURNITURE.
While the foregoing described prior art devices have, to some extent, enjoyed commercial success and provided some improvement in the art, they have also been subject to several problems and limitations. For example, many of the prior art food and beverage trays are confining and intrusive for the user when secured to an armrest or armrest cup holder. One critical problem exhibited by the tray shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,118,063, described above, arises from the use of a trio of beverage cup receptacles which extend into the user's lap when in use. The extension of the cup receptacles brings the receptacle bottoms close to the user's lap. This is confining to the user and raises the risk of accident or mishap as the user's legs contact the cup receptacle bottoms. As a result, there remains nonetheless a continuing need in the art for evermore improved, efficient and useful food and beverage trays for use in such stadium and theater facilities.